Marcel Bouraine "Turbot" Illuminated Sculpture Art Deco Underwater Scene

A dramatic and rare Art Deco illuminated centerpiece by Marcel Bouraine, depicting an underwater scene of three large turbot (flatfish) with dramatically arched, silvered bodies swimming among gilt bronze seaweed, coral, and curling tendrils, rising from a rocky seabed encrusted with shells, scallops, snails, and a starfish in gilt and silvered bronze. The pierced backplate is designed to be lit from within, the interior glow throwing the marine motifs into striking silhouette and relief. The sculpture is raised on a substantial rectangular onyx base, its natural banding echoing the aquatic theme.

This model is a documented design: an engraving of it was published in Henri Rapin's La Sculpture Décorative Moderne (Paris, 1929), confirming its place among the recognized decorative sculpture of the period. An example of this exact model — matching in size, title, and materials — sold at Sotheby's New York, Design, 2 March 2016, lot 93, property of a private New York collector, achieving $40,000 against a $7,000–9,000 estimate, well over four times its high estimate — a strong indicator of collector demand for this design.